Take Care of Nell
by Raderle
Summary: Callen is worried about Nell. She's sick but refuses to acknowledge it. What is he going to do with her?


TAKING CARE OF NELL

Here's a gift for my Nallen fans. It's a short one-shot of my second favorite couple on NCIS Los Angeles. I know…I know, on the show they aren't a couple so this is totally AU, but they should be! I so don't like Anna with Callen. They have NO chemistry on the show. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get this finished but a new baby arrived in my family with some health issues so we've been rather busy. All is well now.

All of my minions except for Lovey are currently asleep in the back of their closet, but I'm sure they'll be out here pestering me before too long. Lovey thought it was long past time I revisited Nallen.

DISCLAIMER: I don't own NCIS Los Angeles or any of the characters on the show. If you recognize anyone, they're not mine. I only own my original characters.

Please hit that little button and leave a review on your way out to let me know what you think.

Enjoy.

~,~,~

Callen stepped out of the shower looking over to see whether his girlfriend was up or still in bed. They weren't officially living together yet but they might as well be. If they weren't here, they were together at Nell's apartment.

"Nell, you're going to be late if you don't get a move on. Up and at 'em little spider." Callen walked over to the bed and looked down. All he could see of Nell was a bit of her gorgeous red hair. She was usually a bundle of energy in the mornings, so he was somewhat surprised; even a little worried seeing her huddled up under the covers in bed with her back to him.

"Don't want to…'m tired," Came from the mound of covers on his bed hiding the rest of his girlfriend.

"Hetty's expecting us in Ops on time. I don't want to face her wrath. Do you?" He pulled the covers off Nell and was surprised to see how pale and wan she looked; not at all like her usual perky self. "Are you feeling all right Nell?" he asked as he tried to put his hand on her forehead.

"I'm fine G." She swatted his hand away while grumbling. "I didn't sleep well and I have a bit of a headache, that's all. I'm going to take a shower." She gave him a somewhat pathetic look asking, "Can you make me some tea? It'll make me feel better."

"Sure pixie. It'll be ready when you are." He leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the lips and helped her out of bed. She stumbled into the shower with Callen watching. Soon the sounds of the falling water drowned out any hope of a continued conversation between the two.

He decided he would keep a watch on her at work, then turned to get the promised cup of tea prepared. Something was definitely off with her and he was worried. It never failed to amaze him at how many emotions she was able to invoke in him without even trying. He didn't usually handle emotions well and it was a new experience for him. Those emotions made him uncomfortable at times. Still, he wouldn't trade his feelings for Nell or hers for him, for anything.

Making Nell one of her favorite blends of tea and himself some strong black coffee he continued exploring his feelings for the pint-sized pixie who had snuck through his defenses and taken up space in his heart. He pulled a couple of breakfast buns out of the refrigerator and warmed them up in the microwave. There wasn't time to make anything else. They were running dangerously late as it was.

~,~,~

By the time Nell was out of the shower, dressed and ready for work, Callen had her tea ready the way she liked it in her travel mug along with his coffee in another. He had the breakfast buns warmed up and had already eaten his since he would be driving.

She walked into the kitchen, stopping to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for the tea G. It's exactly what I need this morning."

"There's a breakfast bun in the bag for you too. We have to get going or we're gonna be late." Callen hugged and kissed her on the forehead and then the lips. He noticed that she felt warmer than usual. Yep, he was definitely going to be keeping an eye on her today.

"We won't be late." Nell replied as they walked out to his car. He opened the passenger side door for her then handed her the bag with the bun in it and her tea once she was buckled in. He went around, got in on his side and put his coffee in the holder behind her tea. The Jag purred as he accelerated out of the driveway and down the street to the freeway. She leaned back in her seat sipping her tea. She pulled the breakfast bun out of the bag, took one bite and then slipped it back in the bag. She hadn't been feeling well since last night and didn't think her stomach was up to the sugary sweetness.

Callen kept glancing at her while driving and noted that she had only eaten a bite of the bun. It was one more thing confirming his worry that she wasn't feeling well but trying to hide it from him. Sometimes he got so frustrated when she did that. He knew she could take care of herself, but he wanted to be the one taking care of her.

They were in luck that morning; traffic was lighter than usual and they made good time into work actually arriving 5 minutes early. Nell went up to Ops while Callen headed into the bullpen to begin working on his never-ending pile of case-related paperwork.

~,~,~

Up in Ops, Eric took one look at Nell and blurted. "Are you okay? You look like crap!"

"Gee thanks Eric. Nice seeing you too." Nell gave him a look of annoyance. "I have a bit of a headache is all. Don't say anything to Callen. I don't want him worrying over nothing."

"If you aren't feeing well why don't you go home? I can handle Ops today. I've done it before you know."

She gave him a withering look, "I'm fine Eric! Let it go."

"Okay grumpy pants, okay". He turned to his computer and continued the background check he was working on. He knew Nell was feeling worse than she let on but she was so stubborn she would never admit it. He decided to keep a watch on her and if she got any worse, he was telling Callen whether she wanted him to know or not.

Nell sat down and tried to work, but she was having trouble concentrating. Her headache was getting worse by the minute and her bones ached. She felt like she'd been hit by a bus and dragged along behind it. As the morning progressed she knew she was running a fever but tried to hide it. " _All I have to do is get through this day and then I can go home and rest. That's all I need…some rest."_ All of a sudden, she rushed out of the room barely making it to the bathroom before throwing up the tea and small bite of bun she had eaten that morning.

Heading back into Ops after drinking a small glass of water and running some cool water over her face, she felt a little better but, as limp as a wet noodle. Luckily, Eric was still absorbed in his background check and hadn't noticed her departure or return. She sat down and at least tried to get some work done.

Once Eric finished the background check, he glanced over at Nell hoping to see her feeling better. To his surprise she looked much worse than earlier. Her face was shiny with sweat and her eyes were somewhat glassy. "Nell, I…uh…nature is calling. I'll be right back."

"Kay" came the distracted reply.

Eric hurried out of Ops, down the stairs to the bullpen and headed straight to Callen's desk. He stood there nervously waiting for Callen to acknowledge his presence. When he finally looked up, Eric blurted out "Callen, uh…can I…I mean I have to tell you something."

The other three members of the team looked up and watched the interplay between the two.

Callen asked. "What is it Eric? Do we have a case?"

"No…no case. Its…well its personal and um…I probably shouldn't be telling you this…but…"

"Spit it out Eric. What shouldn't you be telling me?" Callen was getting frustrated with their computer tech. He was standing in front of him fidgeting and rubbing his hands together over and over again. Whatever it was he wanted to tell him, it was upsetting the man; that much Callen could see.

"It's just that…well I kind of implied that I w. 't say anything to you. But, it's getting worse…and um…I think you should know." Eric was having trouble getting his mouth to work properly. He knew he had to tell Callen, but the thought of Nell being angry at him was daunting. She could be a real spit-fire when she was angry. And since she had gone on several missions with Hetty's premier team, she had become even scarier to him.

"Know what!? Just tell me. I promise I'll keep it between us okay?"

Eric heaved a huge sigh of relief. "Thanks Callen. It's…well…I don't want Nell mad at me and this is about her. She's not feeling well and I can tell its getting worse. I suggested she go home since I can handle Ops on my own but she almost bit my head off. She told me not to say anything to you, but I'm really worried about her. Her face is flushed and her eyes are glassy. She's definitely sick, but she won't admit it!" To say he was frustrated was an understatement.

"Thanks for telling me Eric. I'll take care of it."

Eric heaved another sigh of relief and returned to Ops. Callen waited until he had disappeared upstairs, looked at the other three; then walked over to Hetty's office. Nell would put up a fight if he tried to get her to take care of herself and see the doctor, but _no-one_ defied Hetty when she issued an order. He stood in front of her desk and waited for her to acknowledge him.

"Is there something you want to tell me, Mr. Callen?" Hetty looked over at him.

"Nell is sick Hetty, but she won't listen to me and go home. Eric just came down and told me she's getting worse but she won't listen to him either. She'll listen to you if you tell her to see a doctor then go home to rest."

"I see Mr. Callen. I'll take care of it. You can go back to work on your after-action reports."

~,~,~

Nell was trying to concentrate on work, but her head was pounding more than ever making it difficult. She had been ignoring the fever she knew she was running, but now her throat was becoming sore as well; in fact, it was painful to swallow and she had no appetite. She was exhausted and every bone in her body was hurting. _"Shit! Can this day get any worse?"_

"Miss Jones," coming from Hetty startled her because she hadn't heard her come into Ops.

She turned to look at the Operations Manager as she replied. "Did you want something?"

"Yes, Miss Jones. I couldn't help but notice that you appear to be under the weather. Should you be here at work?"

"I'm fine, just a headache. I can work."

"It doesn't look like 'just a headache' to me. Come with me downstairs please."

"But Hetty…"

"No buts Miss Jones. Follow me. March!"

Knowing she had no choice, she immediately stood up and followed Hetty to her office. Hetty motioned for her to sit down then went around her desk and returned with a thermometer. "Open up. Let's see how high your temperature is."

Nell obediently opened her mouth for the thermometer all the while thinking, _"How does she always know these things? I see what Deeks was talking about the last time I teamed with him."_

When Hetty removed the thermometer and read it she was surprised and worried. Nell was running a fever of 104F. She gave her a stern look as she used her phone to call a doctor who was cleared to treat the members of OSP. She explained the situation to him and was told to send the patient to him as soon as possible. As she hung up, Nell began talking.

"I'm fine Hetty. I can finish the day. I promise I'll rest this evening."

"I know you will Miss Jones. Mr. Callen will be taking you to your doctor's appointment and then home from there. The doctor will be calling me once he's examined you. I expect you to follow _every one_ of his instructions. Do you understand?"

"Yes Hetty." she sighed.

~,~,~

Hetty moved to the bullpen and motioned to Callen. "Mr Callen, take Miss Jones to see Dr. Elliot at this address, then take her home. She is to follow the doctor's instructions _to the letter._ I expect you to make sure she does so. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes Hetty." Callen could see the twinkle in her eyes. "Come on Nell, you heard her."

"You're enjoying this, aren't you Callen?" Nell grumbled.

"No, I'm not. You're sick and you shouldn't have come into work today. We need you provide backup to us in the field, but not at the risk of your own health."

Deeks chimed in. "Come on Nellosaurus, do what you're supposed to. We need you healthy."

"Yes, we do." agreed Sam and Kensi simultaneously and then looked at each other. "Jinx!" Kensi yelled looking at Sam and laughing.

"Mr. Callen, since it's Thursday and we have no active cases, I'll expect to see you back in the office on Monday." As the two walked out of OSP Hetty smiled to herself then turned to the rest of the team. "You all have plenty of paperwork to do. Continue."

"Hetty, can't we get tomorrow off too?" Deeks asked, tilting his head just so and looking at her through his bangs.

"No, Mr. Deeks, you can't." She laughed to herself as she walked back to her office. _"He's such a cheeky bugger! I'm glad to see that Mr. Callen is apparently in a relationship with Miss Jones. He needs someone other than Sam to help ground him and show him that there is more to life than work."_

~,~,~

Dr. Elliot greeted Callen and Nell when they arrived and took them to his office. "I'll examine you Nell and then we'll come back here so that I can fill in Mr. Callen since he's going to be your caregiver." He called his nurse into the office and asked her to take Nell to an exam room and then come and get him.

The nurse took her temperature, weight and blood pressure; then gave her a gown to put on. "The doctor will be here in a minute."

The doctor examined Nell thoroughly; finally diagnosing her as suffering from the flu. Since her fever was so high, he wrote out a prescription for an antiviral medication and told her to be sure to drink plenty of fluids while treating her headache and fever with OTC medications. He cautioned her to call him immediately if her symptoms became worse. He also recommended she start getting the flu shots each autumn.

"You can get dressed now and meet me in my office."

~,~,~

Callen was waiting for her in the doctor's office when she arrived. "So…" he smirked. "You've got the flu. I think that's more than just a headache, don't you?"

"So I was wrong, G." Nell grumbled. "Sue me."

"I don't want you working when you're sick. I worry about you." He reached over and took her hand and squeezed it gently.

She looked at him and saw the worry in his eyes, so sighed and gave him a contrite smile. "I know, I'm sorry."

"Nothing to be sorry about. Let's get you home."

Callen took her home, put her to bed and spent the next three days taking care of her. He brought her tea when she wanted it and made sure she took her medications. By Sunday, she was feeling much better. Her fever was gone and she no longer felt like someone had stomped all over her. She was looking forward to returning to work on Monday.

~,~,~

Monday morning rolled around and Nell was the first one up. She was back to being her usual cheerful self. She hopped into the shower figuring Callen would have his coffee and her tea ready by the time she was done. However, when she returned to the bedroom to dress, she was surprised to see him still in bed. "Come on Callen, up and at them" she reached over and pulled the covers off him. "We're going to be late."

"I don't feel so good Nell" came a raspy voice from the bed. "Dammit, I think you gave me your flu bug. I feel like I've been hit by a car and dragged for a mile."

"Poor baby. You want me to kiss it and make it better?"

"No. I think that's what got me in this mess in the first place," he groaned. "Could you tell Hetty I won't be in today?"

Fini


End file.
